Recently I spoke to a dealer whose internal information technology (IT) person had quit suddenly after receiving another job offer. The dealer scrambled to find someone else. He hired a small, local IT firm that soon went out of business. Once again, the dealer scrambled to find a solution. The amount of effort and worry … Read more
Do you believe your dealership is safe from phishing attacks? Here are two actual incidents that occurred at dealerships as a result of successful phishing attacks. One day a salesperson at a Ford dealership received an email. The subject line read: RE: 2015 Ford Focus. The email appeared to be from a customer who was … Read more
The process of purchasing a phone system is not to be taken lightly. Phone calls into dealerships outnumber Internet leads by four to one, and many studies show that dealers are not able to handle both the volume and routing of incoming calls in a way that meets customer expectations. When you’re buying a new … Read more
Phishing is the practice of sending targeted emails designed to lure employees into a number of actions, such as entering login credentials, credit card information or downloading documents infected with malware. Phishing emails appear to come from familiar entities such as a bank, healthcare provider or delivery company. Sometimes they contain threatening messages such as … Read more
How confident are you that your dealership can withstand a cyber attack? In my experience, most dealers underestimate the threat of attack and overestimate their ability to withstand an attack. When looking at your internal information technology (IT) strategy, it’s important to understand where cyber attacks originate. First, identify what in your dealership is valuable … Read more
Microsoft has released Office 2019, the newest version of its desktop suite of applications that most dealership employees use on a daily basis; including Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook for email. Prior versions of Office that your dealership might still be using are Office 2016, Office 2013 and Office 2010. Please don’t tell me you’re … Read more
Cyberattack prevention is an important part of running a dealership, and phishing is the most common type of intrusion.
With a tech-savvy generation aging into car ownership, auto dealers can’t afford to let their online resources become a source of weakness.
Your dealership’s appeal to consumers is linked closely around how smoothly it operates. What should you do to keep from breaking down?